First of all, I just want to take a moment to thank everyone who sent well-wishes following my unscheduled (I don't like to refer to it as "emergency") appendectomy Saturday morning. I'm doing great, actually was back home 12 hours after the procedure. I'm still a little stiff and sore at the incision point, and I haven't been cleared for any baseball activities yet, but otherwise all is good. I'll be monitoring this week's games in Colorado and Cleveland from the home office, then I should be rejoining the club Monday in Philadelphia.

The Nationals open a three-game series tonight at Coors Field, but attention once again will be on Bryce Harper, who is back with the team after yesterday's examination in Pensacola, Fla., with noted orthopedist James Andrews. Davey Johnson will be giving the full update on Harper during his pregame media session (which should come around 6:30 p.m. EDT) but I can tell you (via a source close to Harper) that he has not undergone any type of surgery and any concern about that photo of him wearing a knee brace is "probably overblown."

As for tonight's game, Dan Haren gets the start, trying to bounce back from a ragged start against the Mets and trying to get the Nationals back over the .500 mark. Enjoy the game and the conversation here…

not to be negative and have everyone jump on me, but that is on Davey 100%, team had a day off, pen is rested, it was clear Haren ran out of gas early in the 5th, why not go with a middle reliever?just saying

Is Haren toast? Pitches a bit too slow for the pen. Man, once he loses it- it's the fastest meltdown you have ever seen. Gives it up in bunches. Dreck. But we should have scored more also– runners all over the bases, pitcher having to throw tons of pitches. 2 in Coors not quite enough.

All of a sudden, everything went up… And if we lose, he will humbly say 'I didnt get the job done… Blah, blah, blah… I started off so well…' And people will cheer becuz he 'owned' the loss and is a stand up guy… He is terrible… But Adam has to make the DP play…

Don't be negative Mick. Hey we scored 2 whole runs. This team just flat at sucks. And if that offends anyone too bad. And if you think I only post when it's bad your correct. They stink and I am done wasting time with this team and all of you people who think there hope. Only guy with a set on here is Mick.

So now, we will see guys pressing…. What a cluster f*ck….*shaking it off*. Come on Nats…. Need 3 runs… Should have taken advantage earlier but lets do this…We knew that they were gonna bomb Haren as he likes to give Hrs… Lets do this…

Mick I actually like most of the posts here. I am just mad. I too took a bit of a break and tried to calm. There are a lot of people who ar PO d right now. They have a right to be. I won't criticize those folks. So I don't like when they criticize you or I. But the bottom line is the team is just not good. Chances to score. We don't, errors, crappy pitching… It is what it is. And what it is is bad baseball.,

This wasn't giving Haren a final shot. There aren't a lot of good options for starters out there that don't involve a massive overpay and the minor league kids aren't exactly ready. Just nothing to be done in the near term.

Team is fine, they have dead weight. Got rid of some haven't gotten rid of all.However I will fuss at individuals nebver the team. That is what I call a real fan, butt don't plan critisize some one who thinks the team is bad, just as I say in my classroom, keep it at tge door. This is a fan's spot.

Secret wasian man I agree with 100%after Saturday night which was ugly, its best I tone it down…your right though, anyone has a right to be pissed.I am looking for a historical precedent for teams that missed playoffs the year after winning their division and then bounced back the folowing year… I think KC Royals…1977 and 78 won West, 1979 missed playoffs, 1980 went to WS

I think the teams record will make the decision about Haren; clearly he has shown his career is on the slide and cannot be counted on. If we improve by mid season you can see Rizzo chasing a starter but if we continue riding the mediocrity train then why give up prospect(s) for a lost season. I'm sure Haren will have a couple of decent starts but, as witnessed by the long balls, he isn't nearly the pitcher he was.Still doesn't excuse another pitiful output by the offense AGAIN tonight.

Could we go a day without Morse's name mentioned. That is water under tge bridge.I havent looked up recently, but last time I did Span was responsible for more runs than Morse, and lord knows he fields better.

They need to swap Stammen and Haren. Haren seems to be able to go a couple of innings.There is no excuse for tonight. Davey handled the situation perfectly with the minor league pitcher. You have to pull Haren as soon as two guys get on base in the same inning.All I can think is that Davey wants Haren gone so he is deliberately trying to embarrass him by leaving him in games.

Thomas Boswell analyzed the situation perfectly in today's post.Who is most to blame for the Nats' results so far? Not counting injuries, it is Dan Haren and Tyler Moore.Haren is obvious, but Moore, well he hardly played, right?Rizzo expected Moore to put up Morse type numbers. If Tyler Moore had done his job, the Nats would be a few games above .500.

Oh… No wonder I didnt see it… I don't read his posts.. When you claim to be a fan yet only come up to spew negativity when the team is losing, you get no respect or acknowledgment from me….Anyway, I'm still livid about that predictable 5th inning melt down by Haren….

MNF, I think you're being too harsh on ALR. It's not like it was an easy grab. He leaped for it and couldn't quite reach it, it was off the top of his glove. It's not like it was an error, he did all he could.

Was Davey fooled by how well he started out and giving Haren the veteran benefit of the doubt? Hopefully this outing will cure him of that, but it's something we're all seen before so it's hard to say.

I am furious that Johnson left Haren in. Let's see if any reporters made the trip and if they push him on this. You have to yank him immediately. He is not like the other starters who all work out of trouble. Once he gets in trouble, he is shot.

William – Some of us talked about the Boz article earlier… Think most have an issue with Boz and the article becuz at first he lauded all the signings and didnt disagree with any of them but now all of a sudden he is changing his tune… Also thought he was too hard on Span…But yeah Haren is some slum…. And Moore, well I have said time and time again, he reminds me of a morse with way more potential and without the injury bug/history….

Tyler Moore and Ike Davis won't be the last guys who the league figures out and who can't make adjustments. I sincerely doubt that we will ever see Tyler Moore (or Espinosoa) back on the Nats, except for perhaps this September. Tyler Moore has no clue what he is doing at the plate; he is a lousy fielder and he has no speed. His job was to provide lumbering power and if he can't do that, then he is useless.

MNF – yeah before the 5th even started, I said its an enigma for Haren… And it seems as if he gasses at that point no matter how low the pitch count is…. Which is just disturbing… It's well documented that I don't care for Haren but we need our 5th to be able to go more than 5…I don't blame DJ so much in the fact that it went so bad, so damn fast, but at some point (this is game number 12 for him) he has to know, that at the 5th, you gotta get someone going….

Haren can take Duke's place. This obviously Haren's last hurrah as a starter. He can chew up innings when we are hopelessly behind and do not care how many more runs we give up, which I like because it blows the starch out of the pythagorean theorem.

Yeah… William… We will disagree on Span as I loved the signing…. Thought it was totally great… Span has covered our behinds and plays great Cf… He is a smart batter…I just think injuries took a huge toll on the team and the reserves didnt do a good job filling in… Seemed like every night we were sending a line up of 4 guys who were hitting under .200 ….

"Dan Haren stole 13 mil from the Lerners. I'd have Rizzo's head if it were my team."If you fired a GM for every failed acquisition, you'd never have a GM. There was every reason to believe Dan Haren would rebound. It hasn't worked out.

Have Rizzo's head, and then watch him sign with another NL org and beat the Nats behinds for 10 years. No one is perfect. He batted nearly 1.000 last year, law of averages catching him, maybe some hubris – Haren, Span were bad deals and going lefty-less in the pen was foolhardy. However, Rizzo knows what he's doing. 2013 will be an aberration – Nats will do fine after this season when some kids come up and some of the dead weight is jettisoned — Haren, etc.

Chad Tracy has an OPS+ of …..7. Last year had one of 112. The guys is shot. Why do they keep using him? Nobody on here seems to realize just how horrible Chad Tracy is.He is dead last in OPS+ on the team. Espinosa's is 27; Haren's is 30. Tyler Moore's is 32. 7 is all but unbelievable. If he had not hit that one homer, we would be looking at close to zero!

David Proctor said: There was every reason to believe Dan Haren would rebound. ====No there wasn't…. He had hip and back issues…. But on another note, why is it, there fly balls go out and ours don't…. Ugh…

haha sure David Proctor — an injured pitcher coming off 3 consecutive years of declining velocity and stats. Maybe you had expectations, but that's you. I am not shocked at all at Haren's ineffectiveness.Yes, Haren stole 13 million from the Lerners.

"No there wasn't…. He had hip and back issues…. "The second half of last year he had an ERA in the 3's. It appeared the back issues were behind him. Hell even if he performed to last year, the 4.04, i'd be happy. Nobody could've predicted this.

Wrong — many predicted it. I predicted it. First time I saw him pitch this year, I knew he was washed up. Good try though. I laugh at all the team that were knocking down Haren's door trying to sign him. haha Why do you even bother defending a clearly washed up pitcher and horrible winter signing? Upset the Natitude boys are getting whipped – again?

I will never understand people saying the Span signing wasnt a good one… We needed a lead off man, we needed a good CFer… It was a great sign… He is an upgrade over Morse…And Haren's velocity also has continually come down… I think the only ones who really liked the signing were the folks who were so desperate to see EJax go bye bye and/or the Rizzo faithful….I'm not down on Rizzo for messing up on this one… It happens…. But I hated the signing then and I hate it even more now….

"Less Platu said…Wrong — many predicted it. I predicted it. First time I saw him pitch this year, I knew he was washed up. Good try though. I laugh at all the team that were knocking down Haren's door trying to sign him. haha Why do you even bother defending a clearly washed up pitcher and horrible winter signing? Upset the Natitude boys are getting whipped – again?"Wow, ballsy prediction after he got blown up 15-0. Amazing foresight you have. Of course, Mike Rizzo couldn't have seen that game or the rest of Haren's performances. What Rizzo saw was a guy with great career numbers who had a slightly higher than average ERA last year, but returned to his career norms in the 2nd half. It was a reasonable gamble to make. Again, if you fire every GM for a failed acquisition, you'd have no GM. EVERY GM has failures. GM's don't get the benefit of hindsight.

You have to go home on that through. Desmond wasn't thinking, not that it matters after Storen's dreadful pitching. For a guy who has a great walk/K ratio, he seems to always walk the lead-off runner. Not smart.

"Terrible play by Desmond letting another run score. Now even a grand slam won't save us. F.P. congratulates him."What? You can't go home on that play. For one, it's not likely he gets him. Then you end up with the run scoring and no outs. Desi made the right play.I swear when we lose, people complain about EVERYTHING.

I like Storen… He had actually been one of the most consistent BP guys lately… But if there was a game for him to blow up in and be bad Storen, this was the one…Pitching was bad tonight outside of Abad and Davis (yes, he was theatrical but he didnt give up any runs)….

David, all you say is true. But Haren hits a wall, and he hits it fast right around the 5-6th inning. Davey has GOT to move faster, just take the good innings and go on. Because we have Ohlendorf–who knows, and Det coming off the DL. Should have put more effort into winning THIS game.

If you don't understand why Span was at best, an iffy signing, take a look at his OPS averages. They are not in any way good. He has hit as many homers as 8 in a season but has 0 this year.His on base percentage is not good at all. He has speed but is not especially good at stealing bases. He is an excellent fielder on a team that has good fielders and no offense.That is why people say that it was not a good signing. It is actually not hard to understand at all.

Proctor: Seems the biggest complainer here is You. Lighten up. enjoy the game, enjoy the forum. Don't be the Forum Bully — because that's how you come off. (okay, now what smart complaining remark do you have now?) haha

Davey is in over his head. Haha. He looks like an idiot when the camera shines on him. That's okay, Davey. Have a little talk with the boys — and you can always send up Chad to pinch hit to bail you out haha

Dude, do you understand the difference between being behind by five runs versus four? Who cares if the Rockies get ten more runs in the inning. The difference between trailing by 5 runs or 4 runs is huge. 4 is doable, 5 almost never is. Maybe the infield should have been in closer.

"Proctor: Seems the biggest complainer here is You. Lighten up. enjoy the game, enjoy the forum. Don't be the Forum Bully — because that's how you come off. (okay, now what smart complaining remark do you have now?) haha"Lol, I'm the forum bully? That's a new one. If you're going to make incorrect comments, I'm going to call you out for them. Sorry. That doesn't make me a bully.

I don't think anyone here would classify me as a bully or a troll except for you. Yet when we won two games, I didn't see you around. People like you only stop by when things are going to bad to bash anyone and anything, even if it makes no sense. Whatever. I'm going to stop responding to you now, before this devolves. The last thing I want is for Mark to have to begin moderating comments again.

Tulowitzki is marvelous. Haren stinks on toast. And so it goes.The Nats can complain about the thin air and the bandbox, but they have the same opportunities.You can't beat Tyler Colvin if you hit like Shawn Colvin.

Storen's E.R.A. is now 4.85, which is pathetic for a reliever in the N.L., even if he has been unlucky. I think Storen needs a change of venue for his good and the team's. No one is going to forget last year when he is getting results like this.

Proctor: "Im not a bully but .. (bullying remarks) you are too Funny.Do you keep attendance during games? I think you need a life — and certainly a rosier personality. Did you take attendance tonight? haha Truly obsessively weird.

Dickson has a 6.06 career ERA, but he has only 7 wild pitches in 98 minor league innings. That's progress.I'm genuinely surprised the Nats got a player for Henry — even if it's an exchange of headaches.

I went through this last week, but we are now 4-9 in Haren;s starts. That, plus Harper being out of the line-up are accounting for most of the difference from last year. The hitting is about the same so far. His E.R.A. is trending up, not down. ESPN projects a 10-21 record for him. He is worse than Karns. I don't see how they can keep letting him go out there or why Johnson doesn't yank him as soon as more than one guy gets on base.

William: They're paying him 13 mil — they're gonna keep sending him out there. What else can they do? Eat 13 million. Boswell thinks so. I think so. But the Lerners are paying out real money here — they're in a tough spot with Haren. He never should have been signed — at least not for that price.

Lannan is making 2.5 million and don't tell me he is hurt. He wasn't hurt at the beginning of the season. Lannan gave you a chance to win half the time essentially. Haren give you a chance to win about 30 percent of the time. Ray is carving him up now.

Zim's playing better, Rendon looks good, Werth is Werth doing fine, Suzuki looks worn out, Laroche is cooling off and starting to let balls get through him, left field is a mess waiting for Harper's return, Span's doing great! Pitching will be back to excellent when Stras and Det get back. Still, the lineup is weak, lacks power, bullpen is good but not as good as last year.Just trying to stay positive — but getting used to reality – this is a .500 or worse ball club — I'll still be a fan. But Davey needs to retire — Rizzo needs to have a better winter next year —

Davey acted perplexed that Haren lost it in the 5th. Why, Davey? Even the casual fan knows more often than not, when facing a lineup for the third time, Haren has been toast. Come on, Davey. Get with it.

Haren's velocity is down 4-5 mph on his fastball since his peak of a few years ago. Death for a pitcher who has to be perfect on every pitch. Haren will go down as one of the Nat's worst, and most expensive mistakes of their young franchise history in Washington.

I think the line up will be okay once Harper is back. They need to cut Tracy and bring up a replacement player, which will be a huge upgrade. Give Rizzo credit for bringing in Soriano since Storen has just been terrible since last October. As long as they stay in 2nd, this season is far from over, and everyone knows that you don't want to face our starting pitching in a short series.McCatty does need to talk to Haren and Storen about the same thing Strasburg was doing. These guys look despondent and beaten on the mound when things go bad for them. You have to stay implacable.

The weekend we should have Gio, JZimm and Stras. Although I don't expect Harper will be in Cleveland, he could be in Philly. Long road trip, I hate to start it out this way. I think Davey waited too long on Haren, somehow expecting he would (a) get out of it and (b) the bullpen would hold and (c) Nats would get some runs. None of those things happened. I looked at the game log, Haren was below average in April, did better in May. But his "bad" starts have been characterized by suddenly losing it– not a drip-drip-drip of runs, not a bad 1st inning and then recovery, and not excessive wildness. His pattern seems to be look good for 4 or 5 innings and then suddenly can't get his pitches where he wants them and is very hittable. Why can we recognize this pattern but not Davey?

What concerns me most about the game is not so much Haren's implosion in the 5th, but the fact that everyone in here and probably watching the game saw it coming based on the first 2-3 pitches he threw in the inning, which were high in the strike zone and the fact that Davey and or Cat could not see it. I will not bash Davey, but his managing of Haren as well as most of this season even by Davey's own account is sub par.

many feel once Bryce gets back, the team will hit… That really has nothing to do with the current state last night, Zim hitting into a DP and the core of the line up only scoring 3 runs. I hope that is not an excuse. I remember many a Yankee teams scoring over 4 runs a game minus ARod or Jeter.

Looking at it objectively this team does not have a great lineup. With everyone healthy it is balanced, but aside from Bryce, they lack power and have no patience. Maybe Rendon will develop, but our lineup is more Phillies than Braves. A 3-4-5 of Zim, Werth, and Laroche just doesn't seem that scary. The sad thing is I don't see it getting that much better in the next few years aside from Bryce and Rendon and that will likely be offset by further declines from Zim, Werth and Laroche. And our farm system has no scary bats aside from maybe Skole.